‘Man of Tai Chi’ Trailer: Keanu Reeves is Owed a Life

The directorial debut of Keanu Reeves, 'The Man of Tai Chi' seems like it should be a bigger deal. Is it that hard to sell "Neo directs a own kung-fu movie" to audiences? But like so many low budget films these days, it's going to premiere on Video on Demand later this month before getting a cursory theatrical release. You'd think there would be a market for such a film, but perhaps most people would rather watch it at home. Now there's an official trailer for the film's domestic release.

And if nothing else, the film looks like it's got some incredible fight scenes. Reeves stars alongside an international cast that includes Karen Mok and Simon Yam, with Tiger Hu Chen leading the movie as the man suckered in to fighting to the death for money. Perhaps the failure of 'The Man with the Iron Fists,' which was also a love letter to genre, poisoned the well for this release.

'Man of Tai Chi' will be hitting VOD September 27, and will appear in theaters November 1. Here's the film's synopsis:

Set in modern Beijing, MAN OF TAI CHI marks Keanu Reeves’ directorial debut. The film, also starring Reeves, follows the spiritual journey of a young martial artist (played by Tiger Chen) whose unparalleled Tai Chi skills land him in a highly lucrative underworld fight club. As the fights intensify, so does his will to survive.